student asking question

What does "fend" mean? Is it a word for animal?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

"Fend" means to take care of or provide for yourself. This word is not only used for animals, but for people as well. If someone tells you that you need to fend for yourself, he is telling you that you need to do something on your own or provide for yourself. Ex: She is too needy. She needs to learn to fend for herself. Ex: Wild animals learn to fend for themselves at a very young age. Ex: He was taught to fend for himself very early in life.

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